PPB December 2020

In 2021, do distributors want print catalogs? Do they want digital catalogs? Do they want something else entirely? The answer is yes. By Tina Berres Filipski T here are few topics that elicit as much passion and surprisingly differing opinions than supplier catalogs. The debate between print and digital catalogs is one that’s been going on for well more than a decade as needs and usage have changed. With rising paper and postage costs and the advent of technology that’s made it easy and convenient to browse products online, a growing number of suppliers began transitioning away fromprinting andmailing catalogs in recent years. Now fallout from the pandemic appears to be accelerating movement in that direction. But not all suppliers want to eliminate print catalogs and not all distributors want to browse products on a website; many have compelling reasons for wanting to continue with print catalogs. In an October PPAI PromoPoll of member suppliers, 40 percent said they plan to produce a 2021 catalog in print compared with 33 percent who say they will produce one digitally, and 27 percent who will produce a flyer or something else instead. A comparable October poll among distributors showed that 42 percent prefer print catalogs, 26 percent want print catalogs but only on request and 26 percent prefer a digital option instead. Six percent said they didn’t want either type of catalog. Although this data is anecdotal, it supports the conclusion that there’s no single, overwhelming trend in catalog preference; what works for some companies doesn’t work for others. And even among those distributors who prefer print catalogs, many only want them if they ask for them. “Personally, I don’t want a print catalog that is unsolicited or from every supplier. I feel guilty throwing themaway or recycling themwhen I know they’ve gone to the expense, but I don’t have space to store themor time to go through every one,” says Amanda Hueneke, CAS, owner/manager of distributor Hello Imprint, LLC, in Frisco, Texas. The Great Catalog Debate Sergey Peterman / PNB_Photo / givaga / AntartStock / Shutterstock.com. Photo illustration by SPARK Publications. FEATURE | Catalogs 20 | DECEMBER 2020 |